Mexico - Valley of the Cierges

The Valley of the Cierges belongs to the desert belt corresponding to the northern hemisphere, which is located in the central part of the peninsula of Baja California. There are steep hills that belong to the Sierra San Borja and extensive valleys such as that of Montevideo. From an altitude varying from 200 to 1400 msnm, this valley presents soils of recent formation without defined horizons (regosols and lithosols) and ancient soils, typical of the desert, composed of layers of clay, salt or carbonate (very dry soils and sterile soils, uninhabitable). Almost all of the area has lithic, stony and gravel soils and large areas of calcium, petro-calcic and saline soils. The average annual temperature is around 22º C on the Gulf of California side. Rainfall is scarce and irregular, with an annual average of 80 mm. The region is in a transition zone between a Mediterranean climate and a tropical climate; these two climatic regimes are found in a diminished form in the valley of the Cierges.